


Crush Depth

by rainbowcowboy



Category: Subnautica (Video Game), ジョジョの奇妙な冒険 | JoJo no Kimyou na Bouken | JoJo's Bizarre Adventure
Genre: Alternate Universe, I hope, JoJo's Bizarre Adventure Part 3: Stardust Crusaders, M/M, Scuba Diving, Slow Burn, Wilderness Survival, fingers crossed i get past like chap 5, i dont have the attention span for slow burn tbh, its a subnautica au, oh my god how the fuck do i tag this
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-08
Updated: 2021-01-21
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:15:36
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27961397
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/rainbowcowboy/pseuds/rainbowcowboy
Summary: Following the catastrophic crash of the starship Aurora on the ocean planet 4546-B, a small handful of survivors find a way to survive in this alien world.Noriaki Kakyoin may be equipped for the crushing depths of this alien sea, but he faces greater challenges; namely, his gruff companion, Jotaro Kujo.Muhammad Avdol's plans for a quick stay on the planet come to a halt when he receives two messages: an unknown voice sending out a distress call, and the coordinates to a location for rescue.With JJBA and Subnautica having been special interests for some time, it was only inevitable that I crossed them over!
Relationships: Kakyoin Noriaki/Kujo Jotaro, Mohammed Abdul | Muhammad Avdol/Jean Pierre Polnareff
Comments: 22
Kudos: 33





	1. don't crash land on an alien planet challenge : failed

**Author's Note:**

> this is so self indulgent !!!!!!!
> 
> ive finally been playing subnautica again and somewhere along the way i had the brilliant idea to include jojo so that's where we're at now 
> 
> i encourage you to check out subnautica as you read (if you haven't played before) . the environments are so rich and unique and honestly my writing doesn't do the game justice .... watch a couple minutes of a lets play or smth

The Aurora was crashing. 

Noriaki knew that, even before the horrible alarms began to blare, the enormous spacecraft was doomed. He had been ripped from typical morning preparations by a deafening roar, the sound of metal wrenching and fuel imploding. The blast vibrated his body, making his bones gelatin for a handful of agonizing seconds. He felt as if he were being ripped apart atom by atom. A dull thought within his terrified mind mused, _that came from the engines. We will crash._ The blast receded into a muffled rumble, and to fill the space, emergency alerts shrieked down every hall. 

Next thing he knew, he was running towards the starboard dock with a speed he did not know how to consciously achieve. Survival was in his legs, and his heart raced accordingly. He convinced himself that if he looked behind himself, he would see choking smoke racing up to meet him. Others ran beside him in the same corridor, but he could barely see them. 

The ship took a disgusting lurch as he neared the lifepod bay, throwing the passengers swarming there off balance. The scene before him was one of disarray. Alterra staff, clad as always in their verdant green uniforms, had clearly given up trying to control the throngs of panicked people, and were shoving those closest into lifepods with great heaves of their arms. The rest of the mass blended with one another: crew and technicians, workers, scientists-- all trying to shove into those precious docked capsules. 

Noriaki was lucky, and found himself right by a pod. Unceremoniously he boarded, aided by someone thrusting him down the ladder by the shoulders. Only moments after he had strapped himself into the wall-mounted seat, the ship gave another sickening lurch. Someone else came tumbling down the ladder, into the seat opposite Noriaki. Their eyes met for one second. The hatch at the top of the lifepod snapped closed. The alarm and the shouts from above became muffled, and over them came a loud hiss of machinery. 

The stranger accompanying him opened his mouth, presumably to speak, but was cut off by the feeling of his organs filling his throat as the lifepod dropped. 

  
  


～ ～ ～

  
  


Noriaki was not conscious for most of the fall, or the landing. There were rumors, that Alterra’s tech wasn’t well taken care of, that their cross-galactic ships were understaffed and poorly built, etc. Such seemed to be true when, only instants after detaching from the Aurora, a small metal panel separated from the lifepod wall and flew directly at Noriaki’s face. 

His first sensation upon coming to consciousness was being rocked up and down, as if he were in a massive hammock. The second was two big things clasping his face, shuddering quite violently. The third was the tangy smell of smoke and chemicals. He opened his eyes. 

The stranger from before was face to face with him, their noses only inches apart. His features were set deep into his face, as if they hadn’t moved in a long time. The only thing that reflected the terrified tremors in his hands were his blue eyes, filled with bright white fear. 

The air around him was heavy with some thick, pale smoke. He drew in a breath so that he could groan, and the dull taste of metal hit his tongue. His breathing seemed to reassure the stranger somewhat, and he drew his hands away from Noriaki’s face. 

“Are you okay?” He asked. His voice was deep. 

Noriaki made a vague sound and touched his forehead. His hand came away dark and sticky. He groaned and tried to sit himself upright. By doing that, he learned he had been laid on the floor.

“You have a head wound,” the stranger added unhelpfully. 

“Get the f… the med kit. On the wall.” Noriaki gestured towards the med kit synthesizer, which he prayed was ready. 

“...Right.” 

In moments a kit was in the strangers hands. He took a deep breath, controlled his trembling, and retrieved a roll of gauze. Despite his awkward demeanor, his work at cleaning and bandaging Noriaki was precise, almost professional. His big shoulders grew scrunched up to his neck while he worked, and his eyebrows shifted minutely with concentration. 

When he finished, he drew back, inspected it. “Are you in pain?” he asked.

“I think I’m in shock,” Noriaki answered truthfully. He couldn’t feel anything but the buzzing of adrenaline in his fingers and the slow rocking below him. 

The stranger regarded him for a moment more, before standing up and declaring, “I’m going to look outside.” 

Noriaki nodded slowly, and watched as the stranger broke the seal to the hatch in the low ceiling above them. He flipped it open with one large arm, then climbed up and out. The fresh air brought new scents, and a new throbbing to Noriaki’s head. Salt intermingled with iron in his nose and made his temples ache. 

After a moment, the stranger popped his head through the open hatch. “Hey, ah-... What’s your name?”

“Noriaki Kakyoin. You?”

“Jotaro Kujo. If you can, come here.”

Though it was not kind to his mounting headache, Noriaki got to his feet and hoisted himself up the ladder. Jotaro stepped onto the roof completely to allow him access. 

Their lifepod floated at the surface of the sea. In all directions, as far as the eye could see, was nothing but sea. The only landmark on the flat horizon was the Aurora, a hulking figure of metal which towered above the wine hued water. The smooth expanses of its white flank jutted harshly from the sea, but it was not unscathed. Chunks of its skin-like hull had been torn away, leaving its metal innards exposed to the elements. As they watched, its broad dorsal fin which stretched into the air bowed and crumpled into the water below, sending up huge plumes of water. 

The distance from the lifepod to the Aurora was immense and indiscernible. Between the impossible size of the tanker ship, and the even more unfathomable expanse of pure ocean, size and distance was difficult to gauge. They could’ve been one mile away or twenty. A huge, gaping dread opened up in Noriaki’s stomach, and his head throbbed. The sound of waves slapping against the rubber floatation mechanisms of the lifepod did nothing to alleviate it. 

Those waves moved forever. They did not cease their slow rocking. They marched on, dark and infinite, into the horizon, forever. He and Jotaro stayed there for a little while, taking in the awful expanse, letting a salty breeze tickle their hair and cool their skin. 

“There was a fire in the lifepod,” Jotaro suddenly informed him. “That wiring that got uncovered when you were knocked out started sparking, and it caused a fire. I had to use the fire extinguisher. It smelled bad.” 

Noriaki regarded him with lavender eyes. “Why are you telling me like this?”

“...I just want to make sure you’re okay,” Jotaro responded. Not once during the exchange did his eyes break from the horizon. 

The sun had come up just high enough to overcome the shadows that the waves threw. The sea below them lost its wine hue, and further lightened considerably. Large forms, likely rocks, were visible just under the surface. 

“I know a bit about this planet, 4546-B,” Kakyoin said hesitantly. He was not supposed to mention what he knew, why, or even how, but in a crisis like the one present, he allowed himself small deviation from his directives. “We may have landed not just in the crater area, but in the shallows. Those contain reefs, and support incredible life. We may have gotten lucky and landed there.”

Jotaro studied the horizon for a moment more. “I’ll check out the floor hatch.”

The tall man squeezed past him down the ladder, but Noriaki stayed out in the fresh air. He fished his PDA out of his pocket; standard Alterra issue, nothing special; and booted it up. A couple solid smacks to the handle made sure the holographic screen stopped its flickering. A unique welcome screen appeared, and a smooth ai voice, feminine in tone, announced :

_This PDA is rebooting with one directive, to keep you alive on an alien world. You have suffered minor head trauma. This is considered an optimal outcome._

_Please refer to the databank for detailed survival advice. Good luck._

Good to know that Alterra’s dry style of dialogue was no different in survival mode. If anything, at least it provided some sort of perverse unintentional humor. He poked around the new interface, going immediately to the backlog of notes he’d been storing for years. To his horror they were missing, replaced instead by three headings: START HERE, SURVIVAL CHECKLIST, and WARNING: BLUEPRINT DATABASE CORRUPTED. 

Under START HERE a passage read: 

_If you are reading this, then you have survived an emergency evacuation of a capital-class ship equipped with Alterra technology. Congratulations: the hard part is over._

_Your PDA has automatically rebooted in Emergency Mode. This operating system has one directive: to keep you alive on a hostile alien world. If that is not possible it will alert salvage teams to the location of your remains._

_It features:_

  * _Full monitoring of vital signs for timely survival advice_


  * _Blueprints for fabrication of a range of essential survival equipment, tailored to your environment_


  * _Onboard camera, microphone, and OCR technology for short-range situational analysis - Cross-compatibility with all Alterra-compliant products_



_NB: Your personal and work files have been encrypted and may be retrieved at a later date by a licensed engineer._

The final note explained where his files went, at least. He viewed SURVIVAL CHECKLIST, which read: 

  * _Administer first aid if required_



Well, that had been taken care of. 

  * _Take inventory of available materials and supplies, and decide on rations_


  * _Survey the environment for threats and resources_


  * _Construct necessary survival equipment_



Noriaki’s reading was interrupted by Jotaro’s return. He was sopping wet, dark hair pushed back flat against his skull. 

“There’s a reef,” he announced. 

Noriaki blinked at him. “What-- did you go out?”

“Yeah, just a quick swim. Take a look around, y’know?”

“That’s dangerous! You idiot, you don’t know what’s out there-”

Interrupting him, the PDA blinked brightly and announced, 

_The Aurora suffered orbital hull failure. Cause: unknown. Zero human life signs detected._

Jotaro’s hands were shaking again. 

_Environment: Uncharted ocean planet 4546-B,_ the synthetic voice continued. _Oxygen/Nitrogen atmosphere. Water contaminations high._

Abruptly Jotaro slammed his hands over his ears. “Shut her up!” he cried, lips turned down with displeasure. The shouting made Noriaki’s head pound. He attempted to power off the device, to no avail. 

_Situational assessment:_

  * _Time: T+ Forty five minutes since planetfall_



Jotaro groaned and frowned further. 

  * _Lifepod hull: secure, although internal damage has been sustained_


  * _Communications: offline_



Finally, silence. Noriaki powered off the PDA successfully this time, and slipped it back into his pocket. 

“...Sorry,” he said dryly. 

“It’s fine,” Jotaro grunted. “Come and look at the reef.” Without looking at Noriaki once to ensure he was coming (he seemed to have a habit of doing that), he descended the ladder. Noriaki followed. 

After opening both hatches, the smoky air within the lifepod had cleared significantly. The metally smell, which Noriaki now recognized as burnt tech and fire extinguisher, has subsided. Now, the scent of seawater wafted into everything. As the PDA suggested, the lifepod was in stable condition, but its tech was frayed. The lights embedded in the smooth ceiling of the vessel glowed only dimly, and sparks occasionally flew from exposed wiring. A large holographic screen which occupied one wall flickered, but did not remain visible long enough for anyone to ascertain the information it displayed. 

Jotaro didn’t wait to lower himself out of the floor hatch and plunge into the water. Noriaki hesitated; he _really_ didn’t want to ruin his uniform or hair; but it would have to happen eventually. As far as he knew, his PDA as well as the gauze wrapping his head was waterproof. 

After a deep breath, he slid in feet first. 

His eyes were not prepared for the stinging sensation of salt water against them. He forced through it. The water surrounding him was warm, a comfortable thirty degrees celsius. It immediately invaded his uniform and hair, making a warm, seeping feeling flow through his hair. 

Before long his lungs urged for air. He kicked up to the surface, weighed down by his shoes, gulped down a breath, and dove again. 

This time the sting was not so bad. He removed his shoes entirely, using them as odd flippers on his hands, and fell beside Jotaro.

The two of them found themselves perched on a smooth outcropping of light rock, coated in white sand. Directly below their feet a patch of mushroom-like flora grew from the rock, vibrant purple against the pale stone. Seagrass and coral encrusted the area surrounding the patch. Large shelves of red coral, resembling table coral, grew from the crevasses visible on the underside of the outcropping. 

In all directions, similar formations of coral-encrusted rock formed the landscape. In addition to the stone, enormous tubes of some spongy material like coral littered the sea floor. It was a deeply organic landscape, shaped over millennia of currents and waves. Arches, outcroppings, little plateaus and canyons, all sculpted years before 4546-B was known to the Alterra corporation, or any of federation space. 

Most breathtaking was the wildlife. Docile fish of all shapes and colors swarmed around the two humans. One, round and spotted, with thick wings like a ray and duo appendages on its head resembling the ears of a rabbit; another, wiry and grey, with a peering orange eye and rounded beak; another, pink and bloated, looking more like a pool floaty than an actual fish. Between the distinct creatures swam masses of small fish, great writhing shoals that wove in and out of the cracks and arches in rock. Deep bleating cries drew Noriaki’s attention. Only meters away was an enormous creature resembling a manatee or seal, with its leathery skin and wide flippers. Its backside tapered off until reaching a large mass which could be considered a tail, swollen with green growths that possibly could bioluminesce. It ambled through the water in a clumsy, alien fashion; suddenly Noriaki was struck with the notion that he and Jotaro, with their land-evolved legs and space-adapted tech, were the aliens. They were foreign creatures, stranded utterly alone on a planet which had made its niche without anything like them. They were in no way suited to surviving here, a world submerged in water. 

Those thoughts were only exacerbated when Noriaki jerked upwards, reaching for the surface, reminded of his human need to breathe. 


	2. fellas, is it gay to cuddle with the guy u were stranded with on an alien planet ?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> well, this took long enough!

Upon return to the lifepod, the duo set to investigating the resources they had. Jotaro poked around at the fabricator, a large device on the wall intended for synthesizing any necessary materials, which seemed to be in okay condition. Noriaki searched a small storage space for rations, and came out with two nutrient blocks, four bottles of filtered water, a flare, and two batteries. Useful, but certainly not enough to survive on. 

“We’ll have to ration out what we have,” he said, displaying the measly supplies to Jotaro. 

Jotaro frowned, and declared, “No way that’s enough. I should go out and try to grab some fish.”

Noriaki wrinkled his nose. “I don’t like that, can’t we just synthesize some meat?” 

“Too complex. The fabricator can cook it, though.” 

“Gross.”

“Yeah. We need water too, you get the stuff for that. We’ll use the daylight while we can.” 

Once again, the only indication that Jotaro was upset was an instability in his hands. He reached out and broke off the corner of one of the nutrient blocks, leaving the rest of the crumbly bar in Noriaki’s hand. 

The measly bite took no time for him to swallow. “Filtered water recipe is on the fabricator,” he informed, before unsealing the bottom hatch and plunging once again into the sea. 

Salt and a coral sample, fabricated into bleach, into filtered water. It was a simple recipe and Noriaki memorized it in moments. However, he delayed leaving the lifepod. Maybe he was hesitant to go out with his wound, or maybe he just wanted a few more moments on his own to brood. 

Jotaro seemed to be in complete survival mode, and perhaps in shock and unable to process the fact that he and Noriaki were (as far as they knew) the only humans alive on 4546-B. He just went and worked, suggesting to Noriaki that if he stopped to think he would shut down completely. The terror was absolutely there, in Jotaro’s trembling hands and deep eyes, but it was chained down in a way that unsettled Noriaki. 

Noriaki was by no means calm either; on the inside his organs felt like a heavy sludge. Part of him wanted to crawl into the lifepod storage compartment and wait there to die. Unlike Jotaro, he was not a physical worker or at all able to distract his mind. He’d grown into Alterra’s corporate mold, alone and with a constant workers’ attitude. Things always  _ had _ to go right, and now they were anything but. 

On the Aurora, he was among the few who knew why the ship was making an almost-stop at 4546-B. He had been entrusted with information of utmost importance, which he needed to hide no matter what. Stuck alone on the planet he was supposed to know nothing about was his idea of a complete disaster. Would he abandon his mission and tell Jotaro what he knew? Were his crewmates even alive to scold him anymore? He could feign cluelessness, but it may be too late for that already. He’d already mentioned the reef.  _ God damnit... _

He decided he wouldn’t go out just yet. 

  
  


At the same time, Jotaro floated at the surface of the water, a small grey fish wriggling in his clasped hand. He had just grabbed the thing, taking slight care not to poke its huge, staring eye. The eye would probably be the most nutritious. When the little staring creature flipped around too much, he gave it a firm squeeze. 

Suspended there, found himself thanking every god he could think of that he hadn’t grown up in Alterra space. He could fish, and swim, and cook, and unlike Noriaki back on their lifepod, he’d actually set foot on natural ground before. 

Noriaki… he already disliked the guy. He was a classic case of Alterra’s corporate slaves, probably born to well off parents and raised surrounded by nothing but infrastructure and starships. He likely learned galactic politics, human history, astrophysics, chemistry and the works. The amount of federation propaganda the poor man had sucked up likely watered down all that science and history into the perfect Alterra worker. His green uniform, mark of Aurora staff, was a sure sign of that. 

Jotaro grew up in Mongolian space. He would even fish with his dad when they guy was around. While catching and eating meat had become a memory after his five years working for Alterra, he could do it, and that was what mattered. Survival was all that mattered.

With a low “sorry”, he snapped the little staring fish’s spine. 

Upon returning to the lifepod, he found Noriaki still there, looking blankly into nothing. The redhead snapped to look at him when he entered. Both of them were paranoid.

“Fish,” he grunted, and presented his catch. Noriaki wrinkled his nose again, just like he had at the idea of fish before. 

“Is it dead?”

“Yeah. Go get water.” 

Noriaki only frowned. He didn’t lift his feet from where he stood. Why wasn’t he going out? They both needed water. 

“Go get water. I’ll cook the fish.” Noriaki still did not move. 

“Go get-“

“Why don’t you go do it?” Noriaki snapped.

They stared at each other for a moment. Noriaki’s eyes darkened, and he explained, “Look, I’m injured and I don’t want to go out right now.”

Was that it? Jotaro kicked himself inwardly, he hadn’t even thought of Noriaki’s head injury. He could have a concussion. Fuck. 

He didn’t want to press Noriaki further, but something angry in him wanted to argue back. “We have four bottles right now,” he said gingerly. “When you’re feeling better we can work it out.” Noriaki’s gaze softened a little, and he poked a few buttons on the fabricator to get it ready for cooking. 

Assuming the matter settled, Jotaro turned and joined him beside the device. 

The rest of the day passed with a sense of confusion and apprehension. Jotaro ventured out of the lifepod a few times, whether to look around the local reef for resources or to catch more fish. He came back once with a chunk of scrap metal, distinctly Auroran in origin. He’d picked it up off the seafloor. They used it to make refined titanium, which the PDA said was a necessary material. 

At night they ate a meal of cooked fish and nutrient block. The meat was nasty looking when raw; cooked, Noriaki could bear it. He remarked to Jotaro, as he crushed the eye of the staring fish between his molars with a grimace, that they should get some salt. 

On this planet, the cycle of day and night was shorter than the simulated day and night aboard the Aurora. Sunlight was intense and brief. True horror settled in as the sun went down. The creatures all around did not settle. Worse, Noriaki noticed a much more enormous sound in the distance: an alien scream that must have come from some unimaginable monster. The shriek would sound, echo, and leave the sea in a void of silence for a moment. Only the waves made a sound during those terrified moments where every lesser creature went silent with terror. 

Night was unbearable. Outside, the darkness was absolute, save for the small bioluminescence that some organisms gave off. Noriaki and Jotaro were confined to the lifepod, which didn’t offer much relief either. The lights within the vessel were sickly and dim, half broken and unable to be powered off. There was no bed, or even a real comfortable spot to sit, so the two men found themselves on the floor, half propped up against the smooth walls of the vessel, so that they could stretch their legs. Constant rocking of the waves below them would lull them into rest, then jolt them awake and fearful at a large crashing swell. 

Most awful of all were the wet clothes that clung to Noriaki’s skin. During the day they did not bother him. Now, laying awake and afraid, they stuck cold and uncomfortable to his body, draining him of heat or comfort. He had shed his heavy uniform, leaving only his undershirt, to little relief. With each cry from outside, he seemed to feel colder. Jotaro was even worse off; his arms were drawn up around his sides, clinging to himself, and his face was set in a deep look of discomfort. 

He lay there for a while, trying to get even a minute of rest. He did not succeed. It may have been ten minutes or two hours. The silence within the pod was agonizing. 

Jotaro glanced up at him when he suddenly lifted himself to his feet. “I’m taking my clothes off,” he declared. “You should too.”

Jotaro looked at him, unreadable. “...No.”

“Yes,” Noriaki replied in a short tone. “We’re wet, and cold, see? We can fabricate some wetsuits tomorrow, but we need  _ sleep _ for that. So, take your stuff off.”

A moment’s silence, and Noriaki groaned. “Not your underwear,” he added. 

Jotaro grumbled, “I know that.” He looked away as he peeled his thick shirt away from his body. Noriaki did the same, unbuttoning his uniform, separating it from his clammy skin, and casting it aside. Once he was stripped he sat back down, feeling his skin and undergarments quickly dry off. 

Despite the reprieve from the chill, Noriaki could not get his warmth back. His bare skin made goosebumps as the circulated air of the lifepod danced across it. It wasn’t like the noises outside had gotten any better, either; worse, now he had no excuse for shaking. 

He chanced a look over at Jotaro and found the man staring at him intensely. The thought of moving closer to Jotaro flickered through his mind. In any other moment he would be appalled at even the thought of contact with someone else in such an intimate way, but now his mind screamed only  _ comfort, comfort, comfort _ and he could not help it. 

He peeled his skin off where it stuck against the smooth lifepod floors and scooted across the small distance to Jotaro. Jotaro made no objection to the approach. 

They sat, only inches apart. Both clearly wanted to touch, but something came between them and made them freeze. To Noriaki, affection was unfamiliar, and even in a situation like this, it was hard to push through that unfamiliarity. Jotaro was still and stoic as always. 

Surprisingly it was Jotaro who united them by placing his hand over Noriaki’s. Up close, his stern eyes carried fear, deep in the oceans of his irises. He continued to stare at Noriaki, feeling the heat between their touching hands sear and roll over clammy skin. He bored that fear into Noriaki’s mind and  _ finally _ the last of his restraint melted down and the two of them crashed into one another in a desperate embrace.

The contact, skin to skin, was relief like Noriaki had never felt. He tucked his arms up to his chest and wedged himself against Jotaro’s broad body, trying to connect to his warmth as much as possible. Jotaro did the same, wrapping his body around Noriaki as much as he could manage. Their legs ended up intertwined, muscular thighs against muscular thighs in a tight hold. Fear oozed from both of them, but as they clung to one another like pitiful little creatures, it seeped out from their blood and let their hearts slow minutely. 

The awful noises seemed muffled somewhat by the comforting sensation of being held. Jotaro’s breaths, deep and close to his ear, soothed him and made the night less terrifying. Though his neck began to ache after a few long minutes, he dared not move a muscle. Eventually, sleep lulled him away. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so so sorry for the long wait !! school is nasty and it's hard for me to get proper motivation to write 

**Author's Note:**

> kakyoin's pov will basically follow my own play through up until the sunbeam .... then it's crusaders time
> 
> jotakak and avpol will be the ships in focus (sorry) , in this canon both kakyoin and jotaro are twenty, polnareff is 25, and avdol is 28
> 
> sick of the chunks of information ? those will only continue, unfortunately; subnautica is rich with information about it's world and i am going to include ALL of it ... which means lots of PDA messages and databank entries


End file.
